In my case, at this point, it's behavioral, not genetic. I know I am eating more than I need to eat. For example, today is a fasting day. I'm fine, from a hunger standpoint. But I'm also at work, so I don't have a stocked fridge sitting 10 feet away.

Counting calories is not productive for me. Counting calories only ends up being an excuse to eat more so I can meet a mostly arbitrary baseline. My body will tell me when it needs food.

If I'm not hungry, I should not be eating. Until that's true, I have nothing to blame but my own actions for my lack of progress. I know my metabolism is capable of dropping the inches from my waist. My first month of this was phenomenal. I did "everything" right, and lost 2 inches. Then regained them due to my inability to handle difficult circumstances.

My circumstances are no longer difficult. My life is pretty damn easy. That won't always be the case, but for now, it is. I will figure out how to manage my desires and make the right choices. I'll learn it now, and learn it well. And when the next storm comes, I'll be ready to ride it out like a seasoned sailor.

...a sailor with six pack abs. :)

04-02-2013, 04:12 PM

otzi

I think there is a subset of guys who really need to dig deep to lose weight. If I paid attention to the calorie calculators, I'd weigh 300lbs.

It is sad to see how little I have to eat to maintain, especially when I see the menus posted by others. If I start eating desserts, breakfast, and/or snacks, it all goes to waist.

07-15-2013, 11:04 AM

Redguy

My waist measurement is still on the rise. In fact, I gained about 10 pounds.

I've decided that what I'm doing isn't working, though I think it would work if I was able to maintain it perfectly. The problem is, I find myself overeating, which negates any caloric benefits that fasting is having.

Weight loss and body re-composition is largely a battle, not against your metabolism, but against your will, your character.

Are you the type of person that can moderate your food intake and eat reasonable meals in the midst of overwhelming abundance? The approach I've been trying to follow will probably work for you.

My problem is that I do not have the ability to consistently, or even frequently, avoid/stop eating when I'm not hungry. My natural tendency is to be "all in". I do most things with very little moderation. I knew this when I started losing weight so I adopted a no-tolerance policy for carby foods, despite the fact that my diet plan recommended adding carbs back in little by little in maintenance. I know that I don't have the self control to moderate that kind of freedom.

In IF, it is still important to avoid overeating, even after a fast. I need to find a way to make this easier for me to accomplish. I'm changing directions. My new goal is not to get to 12%. It is to find a way of eating that allows me to successfully stop eating when I'm not hungry. If I can do that, I'll go back to pursuing 12%.

I have decided to switch my IF routine to a daily all-day fast with an eating window at the end of the day. I'm hoping this does several things for me.

[B]1. Greatly reduces (but does not eliminate) the amount of moderation I need to do.[/B]

I still need to stop when I'm satisfied, but I have a little more leeway if I feel the need to eat something extra. In the past few days of doing this, I've seen that this is much easier for me to manage.

[B]2. Teaches me what real hunger and satiety feel like.[/B]

A 16 - 18 hour fast just meant that I was hungry for lunch. A 21 - 23 hour fast produces real hunger. I actually feel hollowness, not just transient hunger pangs. When I have my dinner, I feel relief from that hunger, not just the absence of pangs. It's a stark contrast that is really eye opening.

[B]3. Reduces my caloric intake slightly[/B]

By avoiding all eating during the day, I miss my lunch while at work, plus I skip all the small snacking I did on the weekends. I won't be eating much more at night to make up for it, so the net result is fewer calories.

[B]4. Forces me to do something else besides think about food.[/B]

There's no way I could be successful at this if I just sit here and think about food. I have to find something to do with my mind for the hours that I'm fasting. So far, it's making me more productive.

[B]5. Helps me enjoy the food that I do eat.[/B]

I could not believe how great my food tasted over the last few days. I'm compelled to savor it. I don't find myself trying to hold back from diving head first into the fridge. Instead I can't wait to taste what is on the table.

07-15-2013, 12:19 PM

Redguy

[B]Problems and Challenges[/B]

So far, I've been doing the all-days fasts for about 3 days. (Today is the fourth day). Here are the issues I'm running in to.

[B]1. Hunger.[/B]

I read in many IF articles that hunger is not at issue. I can say that my morning hunger is not an issue, but by noon. I'm hungry. It does not go away. It just gets progressively stronger until I eat dinner. My hope is that my body will adjust to the new schedule and this will not be a problem.

[B]2. Leg cramps.[/B]

I've had this problem before. I attribute it to low electrolytes caused by an increase in trips to the bathroom. I had a marked uptake in that area. I'm going to try to drink more and replace them with no-sugar electrolyte drinks.

[B]3. Low energy.[/B]

Hunger is fine and bearable up to a point, but it's feeling tired that has a big impact on my life. I need energy to concentrate on work and to play with my kids. I'm not listlessly sitting around, but it can be hard to motivate myself to get moving. I've not tried to do any sprints or strength training yet. This is something that I hope will normalize over time. I'm giving myself two weeks to acclimate then I will reassess and see how I feel.

07-15-2013, 01:18 PM

dkJames

[QUOTE=Redguy;1252009][B]Problems and Challenges[/B]

So far, I've been doing the all-days fasts for about 3 days. (Today is the fourth day). Here are the issues I'm running in to.
[/QUOTE]
You need to ease your approach to one meal a day or you will give up very soon. It took me months to get to that meal timing. A good approach is to push breakfast by 30mn every week until it merges with lunch, then repeat with lunch until it merges with dinner.

Jumping straight in is increasing your chances to fail.

07-15-2013, 03:03 PM

Redguy

dkJames,

Thanks for the input. I'll keep that in mind. I'm not starting from scratch. I've been doing IF for a long time. Basically, I'm just lengthening my fast by about 5 hours. I understand your point and if I need to pull back a bit, I'll follow your advice.

08-14-2013, 12:14 PM

Redguy

It's been about a month. And I'm actually surprised it's been that long. I haven't take a measurement of my waist, but I'm confident it's moving in the right direction, based on how my pants fit.

My weight has dropped considerably. I went from 193ish to 182ish.

Here are the problems I mentioned previously and how I'm dealing with them.

[B]1. Hunger.[/B]

I still feel a little hungry at times, but it's not nearly as bad. Drinking a lot of fluids helps. I'm surprised by how much. Any hunger pangs that aren't affected by drinking something only last 15 minutes or so and are not an every day thing. It's getting to be pretty manageable, but it's not easy yet.

[B]2. Leg Cramps.[/B]

This issue is completely resolved by electrolytes. I drink a little Powerade Zero, but mostly I drink lemon-water with a little salt. It seems to help tremendously. This is not a problem anymore.

[B]3. Low Energy.[/B]

This issue is mostly resolved. It's seems to be tied to my hunger, but only loosely. I feel normal most of the time. Sometimes, I even feel [I]more[/I] energetic. Not being weighed down by a full belly is pretty nice. Sometimes I feel like I just want to sprint... and sometimes I actually do. :) Still, on occasion I get tired. It's becoming more and more rare.

I'm more optimistic than I have been in years, though I haven't lost any weight in about a week. I think this may be something that I can do forever, provided I get enough nourishment out of it. That's my only concern. The problem is, on a higher calorie regimen I wasn't losing weight. So I don't think I'm doing anything too extreme... yet.

08-14-2013, 12:26 PM

Neckhammer

Cool... keep us updated!

10-25-2013, 08:45 AM

Redguy

I've been doing this eating window thing for about 14 weeks now. It's interesting how strongly people react to it. Even my wife, who has been a great supporter of my efforts thus far, wishes I would eat more often.

But I'm going to let my results speak for themselves. And there are good results. My waist is about 35 inches at my belly button now. My weight has fallen just below 180. I will get a current weight tomorrow morning. I'm starting to see abs in the right light.

I think I have met my main goal, which is to find a way of eating that effortlessly maintains my weight. I'm now just trying to get rid of my soggy middle.

01-30-2014, 08:20 AM

Elessar

What's the update on your condition. I see a lot of me in your notes and am wanting to get to where you're going so I am very interested in your progress.

I have planned to go the other way with my meal structure by eating more frequent smaller meals: four or five times per day and carefully planning what I'm eating. I have been keeping a journal for my progress and am enjoying easy results so far.